Bert Karlsson

Who is Bert Karlsson?

Bert Willis Karlsson is a Swedish record company manager, entrepreneur, former politician and front figure of the New Democracy party.

As the owner and manager of the record company Mariann Grammofon AB, Karlsson became a familiar face to the Swedish public as the man behind Carola Häggkvist. In 1984 he started Skara Sommarland, a theme park.

In 1991, Karlsson and count Ian Wachtmeister started the populist political party New Democracy. Attracting major media attention, and with a patriotic platform, the party received 6.7 percent of the vote in the parliamentary election in September. With no previous political experience, Karlsson suddenly found himself elected to the Riksdag as a Member of Parliament.

When New Democracy imploded due to internal struggles and failed in the 1994 parliamentary election Karlsson went back to being a full-time businessman. He has started the popular Swedish reality television show Fame Factory, in which he played an important role. Many Mariann artists have entered Melodifestivalen, the Swedish qualifications for the Eurovision Song Contest.